Q Toon: How It Works

It's true, Buzz. Romania held a referendum on October 6 and 7 on a proposal to enshrine in its constitution an exclusive definition of marriage as between a man and a woman. In spite of a 93.4% yes vote in favor of the constitutional amendment, it failed:

Data from the national election bureau showed voter turnout stood at 20.4 percent when the polls closed at 1800 GMT [later official figures put it at 21.1%], below the 30 percent required for it to be valid.
The two-day referendum, which cost $40 million, aimed to change the constitution to define marriage as strictly between a man and a woman from the current gender-neutral “spouses.”
Religiously conservative Romania, which decriminalized homosexuality in 2001 decades after neighboring countries, bars marriage and civil partnerships for same sex couples.

There had been an active campaign by human rights activists and the Save Romania Union urging people to boycott the election. Centrist-liberal President Klaus Iohannis also opposed the referendum, saying that as a member of an ethnic and religious minority (he is a Lutheran of German heritage), he supports tolerance and openness and rejects religious fanaticism.

Here at home, multiple reports suggest that in spite of the turmoil of the Corrupt Trump Administration and decades of craven inaction on gun violence in our schools, some young people may not be as keen on getting out to vote on November 6 as others are. I've heard interviews with millennials who complain that one vote doesn't make a difference, or that they'd rather march in the streets for change.

Granted, Republicans have been doing their damndest to keep one vote from making a difference, both by cracking and packing voting districts and by keeping one vote from being cast in the first place. But without those one votes after another, marching in the streets isn't going to make a damned bit of difference, either. The only things less effective than marching in the streets are retweeting a meme on Twitter, or sharing a post on Facebook.

(Or, for you pre-millennials, muting the TV set.)

There is a lot that could be done to make the American electoral system more transparent and representative, but none of it can possibly happen if the same people currently in charge of the three branches of government get to stay there.  And they're only leaving office if enough of us tell them at the voting booth that it's time to go.

The above tweet has been flitting around the internet during this past week. One hopes that the volunteer at your polling station doesn't need you to get all high and mighty and speaking in caps. "I'd like a provisional ballot, please" should suffice. But I'll pass it along anyway in case you get stuck with someone who takes their poll working instructions from Fox & Friends.

By the way, did you happen to pick up on the detail that the Romanian election was held over two days, a Saturday and a Sunday, when people generally have more time to get out to the polls than on a Tuesday?

There's something to be admired in the Romanian electoral system.